


Secret Admirer

by KenzieLovesGingerAle



Category: Detroit: Become Human (Video Game)
Genre: Adorable Connor, Alice Deserves Happiness, Animal Death, Connor is confused and Hank is weirded out, Deviant Upgraded Connor | RK900, Deviants (Detroit: Become Human), Gavin Reed Redemption, Hank Anderson Swears, He's a lovesick boy who leaves squirrels for his crush's dog, I guess technically he's a yandere?, Jerrys are good and pure and you can't tell me they wouldn't be friends with Ralph, Just a few squirrels and maybe a few birds or small fish, M/M, No knifeplay though, Obviously Ralph has a knife btw, Only because ralph leaves offerings i will not describe it, Past Torture, Post-Canon, Post-Pacifist Best Ending (Detroit: Become Human), RK900 is named Conan, Ralph is bad at feelings, Ralph loves flowers and morning glories are one of his favorites, Ralphs knife is not for that life, Scanning, Voice sampling, Will have a bit of both povs, a knife should only be pointed at someone you intend to hurt, and is Connor's adopted brother because hell yeah, btw Gavin is strictly a bro to Hank and Connor, he's already got someone in his life who might be mentioned later
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-07-11
Updated: 2018-07-31
Packaged: 2019-06-08 23:29:55
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 8
Words: 15,534
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15254451
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/KenzieLovesGingerAle/pseuds/KenzieLovesGingerAle
Summary: Connor and Hank go shopping every week on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays. Connor always waits outside with Sumo, using his coin to pass the time.But recently, when Hank wakes him from zoning out, there have been… offerings? At his feet?From coins to dead squirrels for Sumo. Who keeps doing this?Ralph likes the tall android with the monster and the old man. Ralph doesn't know why, but he wants to make the android happy. He knows the android likes the humans’ shiny circles, so Ralph spends all day looking for them and leaving them for the android.He knows the monsters like the little animals, so Ralph leaves little animals for it.Ralph likes the tall android."Connor." Ralph likes that name.





	1. Where They Are Now

_Wednesday, April 6, 2039._

Connor adjusted his tie as Hank pet Sumo one last time. “Alright, I’ll be back in about half an hour. Be good.”, Hank advised, and Connor smiled. “I’m sure Sumo will behave.”, he assured. Hank sighed. “I was talking to you, Connor.”, he said, frowning as Connor’s smile widened.

“I know, Hank. Just like giving you a run for your money.”, he said with a smirk, laughing as Hank gave him a light smack on the back of his head. “Fuck you. Alright, see ya later.”, Hank walked into the store, and Sumo made a deep sound before laying down on the sidewalk next to Connor.

“He will be back soon, Sumo. Don't worry.”, Connor cooed, and the dog wagged his tail as Connor talked to him.

Connor sighed, looking around at his surroundings, trying to resist the urge to fiddle with his coin.

…  
Oh well.

Connor pulled out his 1994 quarter and began to flip it, sighing happily as he felt his systems calibrate with every trick.   
He was glad he had managed to get Hank to give it back, and even moreso that he hadn't spent it.  
Even when he was a machine he liked to flip it, and now that he was a deviant, the coin had sentimental value to it, and he keeps it in a homemade pocket inside his already existing pockets just to make sure it was safe.

It was comforting. He had every scratch and speck of corrosion (though he cleaned that off once a month) memorized, every single groove committed to memory.  
Hank didn't quite understand, but Connor supposed it was a comfort even as a machine, as much as it could be.

Connor was quickly lost in thought as he flipped his coin, easily able to do so with his eyes closed.

Why was Ralph outside? There were humans outside why did Ralph leave home?

“Ralph!”  
Ralph immediately turned his head and grinned as he saw a familiar face. “Kara!”, he replied, now remembering why he had come out.

His friend hugged him close, and Ralph returned the favor, happily rubbing his cheek against Kara's and his chin on her shoulder.   
When she pulled away, Ralph hopped up and down, so excited, so excited! It had been so long since he had seen Kara and the little girl! So so long!

Kara chuckled, “Easy, Ralph. How have you been?”  
Ralph opened his coat to show the shirt he had on underneath, “Ralph got a new shirt! It's a lot less hot! I feel a lot cooler! Oh! And Ralph isn't in trouble for the man in the tub! The humans were scary and took Ralph away to be recycled but Ralph escaped when they ran away from the scary place so Ralph didn't die!”, Ralph rambled, and Kara smiled. 

“I’m glad.”, she said, but her smile dropped. Oh no… That wasn't good… “But are you sure you're not in trouble?”, she asked, and Ralph nodded. “Oh, yes! Ralph was found again and they asked why and I explained how the man attacked Ralph and then they looked in my memories to make sure and then they let me go and said not to do it again.”, Ralph explained, his own smile dropping, “They did take away Ralph's knife though. Ralph found a new one though!”, Ralph's smile returned as he held out the heavy weapon.

Kara carefully took it, looking it over before using a fingernail to flip the blade out of its hiding place. She looked it over, smiling as she saw the other uses it had, “This is a really nice pocket knife, Ralph! Where’d you find it?”, she asked, and Ralph bounced a few times.

Kara liked Ralph’s knife! Kara liked it!  
“Ralph found it in the trashcans around the scary recycling place before they took it down and after everyone left when Ralph went looking for his clothes! Ralph found it in the snow and then Ralph took it.”, he explained, and Kara smiled, folding the knife back and handing it to Ralph.

Ralph flipped the knife in and out a few times before putting back in his pocket. He grinned widely, “How is Kara and the little girl? And her new dad? How are you?”, he asked, and Kara smiled.  
“Alice is doing amazing. She’s so happy we moved back to Detroit. And Luther and I are doing well too! We found a nice apartment and are looking for furniture.”, Kara said, and Ralph smiled.

“That's nice! Ralph is happy that the little girl is happy.”, he said, and Kara’s smile softened a bit. “You aren't mad that… that you aren't her dad… right?”, she asked, and Ralph felt his insides hurt. Hmm. He didn't know why.

He gave Kara a similar smile, “Ralph is not angry. Ralph knows that Ralph wasn't. .. Very nice when Kara and the little girl came. Alice’s new dad is better for her. Ralph knows that.”, Ralph blinked in confusion as Kara began to become bury and unfocused. He reached up to his eyes, and pulled back a clear liquid on his fingertips. 

Oh. He was leaking again. Why was he-  
Ralph froze as Kara reached up to wipe away the liquid from his leaks.   
He felt warmth reach his cheeks. This was embarrassing. Ralph didn't want Kara to see him when he was broken.  
“Ralph, you were so kind to us. Without you, the police would have found us and taken Alice away from me. You just didn't understand that Alice was scared. That's okay.”, Kara assured, and Ralph frowned.

“But I could’ve hurt the little girl… Ralph could've hurt Alice…”, he heard his voice quiver. What was wrong with Ralph's voice?  
“You didn't. And even though I didn't know it at the time, you wouldn't have. You were just happy to have actual nice people around. You didn't know, Ralph. That’s okay.”, Kara repeated it. 

That's okay.  
That's okay.  
Okay.  
Ralph took a deep breath. Ralph was okay.   
Ralph looked at a nearby tinfoil food wrapper on the ground. “Does Alice hate me?”

Kara yanked Ralph into a hug, and Ralph felt his face get warm as his leak got worse, even getting the leak on Kara’s clothes.  
“She could never hate you, Ralph. She even said she wanted to see you again at some point.”, Kara said, and Ralph pulled away to look into Kara’s eyes.

“Really? The little girl said that? Alice wants to see Ralph? Really?”, he asked, and Kara nodded. She pulled away, and Ralph pulled his hands to himself as she began to look for something in her bag.

She pulled out a piece of colorful paper, and Ralph blinked as she held it out to him.

There was a crudely drawn person wearing pink with brown stuff on their head. Ralph supposed that was hair… oh! It was Little Alice! There was an “A” next to her.  
Standing next to her was a taller person with yellow… Hair, it was hair, on their head. They were dressed in brown, and had a knife- oh! It was Ralph? It was Ralph!   
There was an “R” next to him. 

The little girl was smiling, and so was Ralph.   
Ralph noticed that he and the little girl were connected… oh! They were holding hands!   
They were standing on a big green thing, and there was a bright yellow circle in the blank space, and some blue outlined lumpy things… oh, they were outside.

Ralph smiled even wider as he saw all the little crudely drawn flowers that surrounded them, and he felt his leak again as he saw a heart shape over himself and Alice.

“Alice drew this for you. She also drew this.”, Kara handed Ralph another picture, and Ralph blinked. This one was a lot less happy.

Ralph saw Alice drawn next to a person with black… Hair… oh! Kara!  
They were both smiling as Ralph was more distanced from them, frowning and maybe even looking angry…

Ralph didn't like being angry. Angry was bad. Angry was bad.

Ralph looked at another person. They had dark brown hair and wore a black outfit with a blue triangle on it.  
Hmm. Ralph didn't know who that was. Oh well.  
Ralph loved the picture anyway.

“The little girl drew Ralph?”, he asked, and Kara nodded. “Yes, she wanted you to have these. She couldn't make it because she is at school in New Jericho, but she wanted me to give these to you.”, Kara said, and Ralph smiled.

“Wow…”, he murmured, but frowned as he remembered something. “But… Ralph can't take these home.”, he sighed, and Kara frowned. “Why not?”

Ralph handed the pictures back as he felt the leak threaten to come back, “Ralph’s house is very old. If it rains the pretty pictures might be ruined. Or a human might come in and mess them up… Ralph is sorry… Ralph doesnt want them to be ruined…”, he said, and Kara took his hand.

“Hey, it's okay. I can take them home and find a way to keep them safe. Then we can give them back to you!”, she offered, and Ralph smiled. “Really?”, he bounced as Kara nodded. “Of course! All they need is some frames or a book.”, she said.

Kara sighed as she put the drawings into her bag. “I have to go. Luther and I have to go get Alice. It was nice seeing you again, Ralph.”, she said, and Ralph nodded. “Ralph was happy to see Kara! Please tell the little girl that Ralph loves the drawings!”, he said, and Kara smiled. “Of course. Bye, Ralph.”, she hugged Ralph one last time before walking away.  
“Goodbye, Kara!”, he said, and he walked away himself.

Ralph lightly bit the inside of his cheek. He would have to go out in the open to get home…  
When Ralph was asked about the man in the tub they blocked the house off since it was a crime scene. Before Ralph could find a way in, it had been torn down to make an “android repair station” where androids could get parts replaced.

Ralph didn't want repairs. He was fine. The scars made him different. Even if they scared people. Ralph liked being different. Besides, what if they thought Ralph was too broken to fix? Ralph knew he acted different. Even other deviants were scared of him. What if they tried to change Ralph to make him act like everyone else?

Ralph didn't want that.  
Ralph didn't want that.  
Not that. No.

Ralph blinked as he heard something high pitched coming closer, and leaned down as one of the humans’ shiny circles rolled up to his feet.  
Hmm.  
Ralph picked it up. 

He looked it over. It was a big silver one with a weird man on it. And said “1994” on it. Humans were weird. He didn't know why they had these shiny things. He figured it was money, but why not just use more of the paper ones?

Oh well. Ralph put the circle in his pocket with a shrug. It was warm, and Ralph liked running his fingers over the grooves.

“Shit, Connor, I’m so sorry.”, Hank sighed, and Connor looked at him with a smile. “It was an accident, Hank, it wasn't your fault.”, he assured, but Hank shook his head. “Of course it was! It’s my damn fault you dropped it, Connor.”, Hank insisted, but Connor simply sighed.

“You didn't mean to scare me, Hank, really, I ended up ignoring my surroundings while I was flipping it and I should have paid more attention. Someone could have snuck up on me or Sumo could have walked away with how lost i was.”, he assured, but he knew it wouldn't help.  
Hank knew how much the quarter had meant to him, and he wasn't the person to forgive himself easily.

“I know it’s not the same, but would you like a new quarter? I have some in the house somewhere.”, Hank was desperate for a way to make it up to his best friend, and Connor smiled. “I’d like that. A new quarter will be acceptable if it comes from you above anyone else, Hank.”, he assured, and Hank nodded.

He motioned for Connor to come along as they began to walk home. “I really am sorry, Con.”, he repeated, and Connor nodded. “And I forgive you, Hank, don't worry about it.”


	2. One Hell of a Coin Trick

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Ralph stared at the shiny circle and then back at the android. He had lost a shiny circle… For some reason, Ralph didn't want the android to be sad.  
> Maybe Ralph’s shiny circle would do?  
> But Ralph didn't want the android to see him. He didn't know why, but the idea made him a bit nervous.  
> Not nervous enough to stop him, though.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm so glad you guys like this story so far! I'm updating as chapters are finished unless I already posted that day, so for example, if I finish chapter 3 today, it will go up tomorrow.

Ralph poked the shiny circle. He had placed it on the table. He had been looking at it all night. Ralph didn't really know what to do with it, but he didn't have much else to do. 

He didn't really write the weird things on the wall anymore, because he only had one knife, and he wanted it to be sharp. Using the smaller knife in his old house had made it dull.

And Ralph liked this knife, he didn't have to steal it.  
Maybe that was why he liked the shiny circle. He didn't have to steal it.  
It came to him, which was not stealing.

Ralph was trying to be better. To follow human rules. 

Humans were bad.  
But not following their rules meant Ralph would be taken back and kept in a glass box again. Ralph didn't like that.

The box was cold, and he couldn't hide from the humans in there. They always stared at him, at his scars. 

They weren't theirs to look at.  
He wasn't theirs to look at.

The white room reminded him of the recycling place… the scary, scary recycling place.  
Recycling is bad. Ralph didn't like it. Watching all the other androids walk into the white rooms at the front of the line… listening to the sounds inside… and then the doors would open, and the androids would be gone…

Ralph had been so scared that he would disappear too…  
Then the humans had run away, and then a bunch of androids came in and made all the androids walk and talk freely like them…

They had told Ralph that he was free, and he wasn't going to die.

Ralph had run away and found that his house was boarded off. He waited until he could go get his clothes and then Ralph had run to find a new place to squat.

Ralph sighed.  
He looked down at the scarring on his hands. White, rubbery plastic exposed where his systems couldn't heal, scratches and scuffs on the surface where he had struggled to defend himself or find shelter.

Ralph ran a thumb over the scarring, breathing deeply as he felt the texture.  
He didn't really mind the scars. Only when people he didn't like stared at them.  
They expected Ralph to get repairs.  
But who were they to expect anything of Ralph?  
Ralph was his own. Ralph liked Ralph.  
Ralph wasn't broken. No, not broken.  
He was different.

“That's okay.”  
That's okay.

Ralph didn't have to listen to anyone. No one. He was good. Ralph was good. They couldn't tell Ralph what to do. He wasn't theirs to tell what to do.  
He wasn't theirs. He wasn't theirs.

_“It's my turn, asshole! Gimme the iron!”  
“No, Fuck off! He’s mine!”_

Ralph felt himself shake as he trembled with anger.  
He was not theirs.

Ralph stood up, putting the shiny circle back in his pocket.  
He felt tense, he was getting angry.

Ralph was going to take a walk to prevent himself from thinking about it.

_Friday. April 8, 2039._

Connor sighed as he fiddled with the new quarter.  
It wasn't quite the same.  
But it was still pretty nice that Hank had given it to him.

“Maybe if you look-”  
“There is a very low probability that it is still here, Hank. I couldn't find before we left, I won't find it now.”, Connor said, cutting Hank off.

Hank was his good friend.  
No, his best friend.  
He smiled.  
His first friend.  
But he was way too hard on himself. 

_“I pointed a gun at your fucking face!”_  
“You were under the influence, and I was a machine, Hank.”  
“You even said you were afraid to die!”  
“Yes. But I may not have become a deviant if you didn't do things like that. You are reason I am alive, _Hank. Believe me, I forgive you.”_

“I still feel horrible.”, Hank said, and Connor nodded. “I know. But that doesn't mean I want you to. You didn't mean to and you even replaced it. And you looked in the garage and found a fidget for me, even if it was not as satisfying, you were in there for five hours, twenty-seven minutes and thirteen seconds. I think that is plenty of time for a lost quarter.”, Connor said, and Hank moved to speak, but stopped when Connor put a hand on his shoulder and stopped walking to make Hank face him.

“Hank. Twenty-five cents is not nearly worth the amount of strife you are going through. Your feelings are worth more than that. Please, I really do forgive you. It’s okay, I promise.”, Connor said, and he could feel Hank's shoulder loosen.

The man’s face seemed to relax, and he gave Connor a similar smile to when they first reunited in front of “Chicken Feed.”

He had memorized that smile. It was his favorite.

“Whippy promise?”, Hank asked, and Connor rolled his eyes and chuckled warmly.  
He pulled his arm off of Hank’s shoulder and reeled his fist back before “whipping” it forward in the old dance move from Hank’s youth.  
“Whippy promise.”, Connor said, and Hank mirrored the action. “Alright.”

The two both laughed as they broke the sappy mood, Sumo wagging his tail happily.

Ralph froze as he heard laughter. He gently parted the bushes next to the chain link fence that was next to the sidewalk, and he focused on the two men who were laughing.

One was old and had grey hair on his head and face. He was wearing jeans and a weird purple and white striped shirt.  
The other looked rather young, with dark brown hair and a fancy outfit on.  
Ralph blinked as he focused on the blue band on the man’s sleeve. 

Hmm...  
Oh! He was an android!  
Ralph watched the pair closely.

“But I hope you know I’m probably going to guilt buy you something in there.”, the old man said, and the android rolled his eyes.  
“I am going to pretend I didn't hear that. Seriously, Hank, it was just a coin. I'm over it.”

The android and the human were getting along so well.  
The concept was so strange to Ralph. 

“Alright, I’ll be back soon.”  
“Okay, we’ll be here.”

The old man walked inside the store, and Ralph pulled away from the fence to avoid being seen.

After about a minute, he peered back at the android, who was standing still with a monster at his feet.  
Ralph didn't know what it was, but it was very big. He had seen monsters before in the park, chasing squirrels and playing with humans.  
This was just a very big one.

The android sighed, and Ralph saw that he seemed to be sad. But why?

Ralph tried to remember the conversation the android had with the old man.

He pulled the shiny circle out of his pocket, looking at it. He heard his insides make humming sounds as he focused really hard on what to do.

Ralph stared at the shiny circle and then back at the android. He had lost a shiny circle… For some reason, Ralph didn't want the android to be sad.  
Maybe Ralph’s shiny circle would do?  
But Ralph didn't want the android to see him. He didn't know why, but the idea made him a bit nervous.  
Not nervous enough to stop him, though.

Ralph waited for the android to turn away or something, and Ralph was luckily given something.

The android kneeled down to pet the dog and hold him still as lots of people passed by, and Ralph snuck out from the fence before sneaking by the android in the crowd. He popped out and stood behind the android.

Ralph didn't think this part through.

He had very little time as the crowd began to thin, so he quickly poked the android's left shoulder and using the android’s compromised view to quickly stick the shiny circle in the android’s right hand and immediately blending back into the crowd.

Connor saw the crowd coming and kneeled down to keep Sumo calm and still as the mix of humans and androids began to pass by.

He felt someone tap on his shoulder and turned to look, but couldn't see anyone, and before he could say “huh?” something was placed in his opposite hand, and when he turned to his right, the person was gone.

The crowd began to thin as Connor stood, looking in the group of people to see if anyone was looking for him, but he saw nothing.

He opened his right hand and looked at the object placed there.

No.  
That…  
How?

Just to make sure, Connor scanned the quarter, his LED cycling yellow.  
It was his quarter.  
How… How had someone not only found his quarter, but knew it was his, and then found him to return it while he wasn't looking!?

“Holy shit…”, Connor mumbled, his LED staying yellow as he put the quarter in its designated place before taking out the 2018 quarter that Hank had given him, tossing it between his hands as he thought of how improbable and nearly impossible this circumstance was.

Ralph finally managed to make his way back to the chain link fence, peering out at the tall android.  
He had a weird expression, like when Ralph tried to scan things. His left eye made it a bit difficult, but he still could if he focused all attention on it.

Ralph tensed as he heard a distinct…  
What did it sound like?  
Luckily, Ralph was helped out by the repetition of the sound.

“Ping”, Ralph quietly said what he thought the sound was, watching as the android flipped the shiny circle.  
He liked it.  
Oh! Oh! He liked it!  
Ralph felt his cheeks heating up for some reason, and he resisted the urge to jump in case he got caught.  
He didn't know why he was just… so happy! But he was so excited! So excited!

He flinched and ducked behind the bush as the monster made a sudden noise while staring at Ralph.

“Sumo, it’s alright. Hank will be back in approximately eleven minutes.”  
Ralph stared through the bush as the android did weird things with the shiny circle, petting the monster at the same time.

Ralph continued to watch the android for a while, flinching as the old man returned.

“I’m back! And I got you a tiny Lego thing.”, Hank said with a smile, and Connor looked up at Hank.

“I… I got my quarter back.”, he breathed, and Hank smiled, “Really!? Or are you making shit up to make me feel better?”

Connor pulled out the coin and held it out to Hank. “1994 quarter dollar coin. It’s mine…”, he said, and Hank turned it over in his hands before handing it back to Connor.

“Well, that's great, Connor! I told ya if you looked-”  
“That’s the thing, I… I didn't look.”, Connor began to walk in the direction of home, and Hank followed, walking next to the confused android.

“What do you mean?”

Ralph watched as the human, the monster, and…  
Connor.  
Connor.  
Connor Connor Connor.  
Ralph watched as they walked away, before pulling back into the alleyway.

Connor.  
Ralph felt his insides heat up as he thought about the name, the android's face.  
He didn't know why, but he also didn't care too much either.

“C-Connor.”  
The name left Ralph’s lips tenderly as if it might shatter if he said it too harshly somehow.  
“Connor.”  
It felt nice to say it. The name.  
“Connor, Connor, Connor.”  
Like a magic word that made Ralph’s insides warm and his cheeks hot.

Connor.  
He liked that name.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Connor, watch your profanity!  
> Also there are two references to Hank's millennial times. Can you name them both?


	3. Dedication

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Ralph didn't know why, but he had to find more shiny circles.   
> Well, he knew why.   
> Because Connor liked shiny circles.  
> But Ralph didn't know why that fact made him want to find more.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm so glad that everyone seems to love this!  
> Ralph is an adorable android

_Friday. April 8, 2039. 9:33 PM._

Connor spun his quarter on his fingertips. 

“Connor, would you chill? It’s nothing to worry about.”, Hank said, taking a bite of the quiche Connor had made for him.

Connor sighed, placing the quarter down on the table. “It just doesn't make sense, Hank! It is almost statistically impossible!”, Connor huffed, leaning his head on his arm, putting his elbow on the table.

Hank smiled, “Maybe. But you got it back anyway. So why do you care?”, he asked, taking a last large bite of quiche before putting his plate on the floor for Sumo. 

Connor picked up the coin, rolling it along his knuckles, “Well, now I just want to know who did it. How did they know the quarter was mine? And how did they give it back without me seeing them?”, he knew his LED must have been a bright yellow, as Hank playfully poked it. “Maybe the universe decided you were too good for me to fuck things up for ya.”, he teased, and Connor rolled his eyes.

“Maybe the universe knows you won't forgive yourself and wanted to cut you some slack.”, Connor mimicked. Hank plugged his ears at Connor’s high pitched voice. “Can you say that but not in chipmunk?”, he grumbled.  
Connor smirked.

_Sampling Hank’s voice…  
Complete._

“Alright, I can use a deeper tone if that fuckin helps.”, Connor said, and Hank gave the android a half-hearted glare. “What have I told you about that shit?”, he huffed, and Connor repeated the sentence in Hank’s voice, though placing more emphasis on the word “that.”

Hank sighed, rubbing his temples, “God damnit, Connor.”  
Connor laughed, and he only laughed more as Hank relaxed when he heard that Connor wasn't imitating him anymore.

Ralph didn't know why, but he had to find more shiny circles.   
Well, he knew why.   
Because Connor liked shiny circles.  
But Ralph didn't know why that fact made him want to find more.

He was doing a pretty good job, especially after he scooped a bunch out of the park's fountain. Ralph didn't like being wet. Wet was heavy. Wet was difficult.  
But for some reason the circles seemed worth it. 

Ralph stood next to a barrel fire in an attempt to dry off. He had gotten a lot of circles of different sizes and colors.

Ralph liked the sound the circles made in his pockets. It reminded Ralph of Connor’s weird tricks. 

Ralph flinched as he felt a sharp pressure on the top of his head. He watched as a weird brown thing fell from his hair and hit the ground.

Ralph ignored everything else as he attempted to scan it.

_Scanning…_  
Scanning…  
Scanning…  
Scan complete. 

_Acorn identified._

Ralph looked up just in time for another acorn to come flying his way, hitting the dent in the back of the left side of his jaw. The acorn sent a shiver through his mouth, and Ralph opened and closed his mouth a few times to get rid of the annoying feeling.

He glared up at the tree, and Ralph spotted a tiny animal throw another nut at him. The acorn hit Ralph on the forehead, and Ralph felt himself begin to tremble.  
Ralph didn't mind most little animals.  
But Ralph certainly minded this one.

Connor glared at Hank with as much hatred as a puppy could muster. “Hank. Give. Me. My. Tie.”, he stated, and Hank crossed his arms. “Eh. Don't feel like it. Try again later.”, he smirked, and the android sighed.

“Hank, don't make me resort to desperate measures.”, Connor said, and Hank’s blue eyes glimmered with mischief. “Is that a threat?”, he pushed, and Connor smirked. “It’s a promise.”, he responded.

Hank tucked the tie into his pocket.  
Connor sighed. “I tried to warn you, Lieutenant.”, he said, pressing two fingers to his bright blue LED.

He felt his synthetic skin fade away, revealing the plastic and rubber underneath.  
He felt the sensation continue all the way down to his feet, his pale visage staring Hank down.

Hank wasn't impressed, “Oh, so scary. Spooky android with no skin.”  
Connor smirked in a way that he almost never used as he pushed his sleeves up to his elbows and pushed the insides of his wrists together, rubber on rubber.  
“Last chance, Lieutenant.”, he warned, and Hank, clearly not understanding what Connor was wielding, gave him a hand signal to say “bring it.”

So Connor did.  
Hank instantly cringed as Connor rubbed his wrists together, making a high pitched squeaky sound that was not even remotely pleasant.

“Agh! Stop that!”, Hank yelled, but Connor did not. “The tie, Hank! Give me the tie!”, he demanded, but Hank shook his head, trying to distance himself from Connor. 

Connor began to pursue, and soon the two were running around the house, Hank trying to get away from Connor, and Connor using cruel and unusual punishment to get his way.

Finally, Hank threw the tie at Connor, and the android caught it, running to his room to put it away with the rest of his suit.

Hank had given Connor the room that had belonged to Cole, insisting that he live with the man once he found out that Connor had been living in a very small box on CyberLife property.  
Connor had been wary of taking Cole’s room, but Hank had assured him it was fine. Together they had slowly packed up Cole’s belongings, Connor scanning Hank every so often and comforting him when his vitals were off.

Hank had felt better after they were done painting and furnishing the room, described the feeling as closure.  
Connor was happy that Hank was healing. He was finally accepting that Cole’s death was not his fault, and Connor was happy to know that Hank had been sober for over three months now.

“Connor! You get what you want and run away!? The fuck is that about?”, Hank asked, and Connor laughed as he turned his skin back on. “Putting the tie back, that's what.”, he responded, walking out of the room to find Hank holding a familiar red and blue gaming console. 

“Skyrim or Stardew?”

Ralph sighed as he rinsed off his knife in the sink. He was very tired, and he could feel the need to enter sleep mode.  
Ralph didn't like sleep mode. Sleep mode was filled with bad memories. Bad thoughts. 

_Panic. Red. Red._  
Hissing. Pain. Red. Red. Red.  
Blue. Red. Laughter. Mockery.  
Red. Ralph. Blue. Red. Ralph.  
Ralph. Error. Error.  
Broken. Red. Running.  
Running.  
Running.  
Screaming.  
Screaming.  
Ralph. 

Ralph shook his head, shoving the memories down as he trembled. Sleep mode was bad. Scary. No. Ralph didn't need to sleep. No, no he didn't. Ralph hadn't slept in almost five years, he didn't need to sleep ever.  
Good. Because sleep was bad, and Ralph had no plans on starting now.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> hey Connor you know what boosts the probability of getting your quarter back by a large percentage  
> Eliminating the thought that the one who did it had any inclination it was yours  
> Also squirrels liked to attack me when I had my dog and trust me acorns hurt


	4. A Gift! A Gift in Secret!

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Connor snapped to attention as Hank woke him up. “Connor, how the hell did Sumo catch a fucking squirrel?!”  
> Connor looked down, eyes widening as sure enough, Sumo had a squirrel.  
> Or… at least… what was left of it…

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Warning for a few mentions of animal death, but I don't describe the body or anything.

_Monday. April 11, 2039._

Connor rubbed his quarter in his pocket. He still had no idea how he managed to get it back, but he had started to accept that he would probably never find out.

“Okay. I’ll be back.”, Hank said, walking into the store, and once again, Connor and Sumo were left to wait.

Connor quickly fell into sleep mode as Sumo laid down, not bothering to fiddle with the coin.

Ralph could see him! 

Connor was standing next to the monster, eyes closed.  
Connor was in sleep mode. Ralph couldn't begin to fathom why, but Ralph didn't care.  
Ralph gently patted his jean pocket, assuring himself that he had brought the circles.  
He wanted Connor to be happy. He wasn't playing with the circle Ralph had given him, but maybe he would like the circles Ralph had collected?

Ralph quietly snuck out of the alley, startling at every passerby before he finally stood in front of Connor, looking up at him.  
Ralph felt his face get hot, and his heart pump really fast. Why did Ralph feel like this? Ralph was confused.

Ralph flinched as something tugged on his jacket pocket, and he looked down in horror to see the monster smelling his jacket pocket, desperately trying to get its nose inside.  
“Hey, stop that. That is Ralph's jacket!”, Ralph whispered, jumping as the monster made a low, almost uncaring noise as it finally pushed its nose into the pocket.

It sniffed around for a bit before pulling away, with the dead little animal that had been inside.  
Ralph tilted his head as the monster laid down again, gnawing on the animal.

Did monsters like meat like humans did? But the little animal wasn't burnt… Hmm.

Ralph looked around, especially at Connor before turning to scan the monster.

_Scanning..._  
Scanning…  
Scanning…  
Scan complete.

_Saint Bernard identified._  
Further information…  
Searching…  
Searching…  
Searching…  
Saint Bernard: a breed of large dog.

Dog? Ralph knew what a dog was. Dogs liked the little animals. And Connor liked the dog.  
Ralph leaned down, reaching a hand out slowly to the dog’s head. He startled at how soft the dog was.

“Wow…”, Ralph spoke carefully, and the dog’s tail wagged a few times as Ralph ran his hands over its weird hair. 

Ralph jumped as the dog looked up at him, wagging its tail as it began to blow air on him a bunch of times.  
Ralph relaxed as the dog began to lick him. The dog didn't seem to mind how Ralph may have tasted (Ralph guessed that he probably didn't taste good) or the scars on Ralph’s face.  
It licked Ralph all over his face, on his mouth, nose, eyes, scarred and unscarred skin. 

Ralph smiled. Ralph liked this dog.  
“Ralph likes you… dog. You are good fuzzy creature. A very good dog.”, Ralph spoke softly, and the dog wagged its tail before going back to eating the little animal.

Ralph pat the dog a few more times before digging into his jeans pocket and carefully pulling out the circles.

Ralph looked up at Connor, who was still in sleep mode.  
Ralph gently and quietly placed each circle at the android’s feet.  
Ralph turned to the dog.  
“The circles are for Connor. You can have the little animal. Ralph was planning on throwing it away anyway.”, he explained, and the dog simply grumbled as it continued to eat. Ralph smiled, taking that as a sign of understanding, “Good. That is dog’s gift. A secret gift! Don't tell anyone you saw Ralph.”, the android said, and Ralph accepted a small wag of the dog’s tail as an answer.

Ralph stood up, looking at Connor’s face one last time before sneaking back into the alley.

Connor snapped to attention as Hank woke him up. “Connor, how the hell did Sumo catch a fucking squirrel?!”  
Connor looked down, eyes widening as sure enough, Sumo had a squirrel.  
Or… at least… what was left of it…

“I… I don't know. He hasn't left my side, and we stayed right here…”, Connor murmured, squatting down to examine the squirrel.

He gently nudged Sumo, and the dog reluctantly let Connor have the squirrel.

_Scanning.  
Scan complete._

_Grey squirrel identified._  
Estimated time of death: Approximately 48 hours ago.  
Cause of death: Unidentifiable. Too damaged.

_Conclusion: Sumo couldn't have killed the squirrel if it died two days ago. Somehow the body ended up in Sumo’s possession.  
Need more info about cause of death, but Sumo has eaten too much of it._

Connor snapped back to reality faster than Hank could say a word, analyzing the squirrel faster than Hank could take a breath.  
“Sumo didn't catch this squirrel…”, Connor stated, and Hank blinked, staring at the android incredulously. “What? How so?”, he asked, and Connor looked up at Hank. “Rigor mortis shows that this squirrel has been dead for almost two days. Sumo couldn't have killed it.”, he explained. Hank stared at his dog.

“Then how’d it die?”, he asked, and Connor shook his head. “Sumo has eaten too much of it. I can't determine cause of death.”, he said, and Hank sighed. “Damn dog… oh well. Throw that thing away and- huh.”

Connor was about to ask why Hank had stopped, his gaze following Hank’s, but stopped as he found the clear answer.

At Connor’s feet was a neatly stacked arrangement of coins.  
Connor stepped back, leaning down again to scan the stacks.

_Scanning.  
Scan complete._

_Several stacks of US currency, as well as some Canadian currency._

_Counting…_  
Nine quarters  
Twenty-three dimes  
Nineteen nickels  
Three silver dollars  
Seventeen Canadian pennies  
Forty-three pennies

_Total: $8.93 and seventeen Canadian cents._

_The coins are sorted by coin. Someone obviously put them here purposely.  
Did someone leave them here for Connor?_

Connor picked up one of the pennies and brought it to his mouth, licking it. “Ugh! Connor! You don't know where that's been!”

_Analyzing…_  
_Traces of treated water. Origin of coins?_  
Traces of blood from Grey squirrel. The person who put these here probably killed the squirrel.  
No fingerprints. Android?

_Searching for possible origins of coins that align with treated water sources._  
Treatment is chlorine and salt.  
Geoanalysis…  
The composition of the treatment is a match for the decorative fountains in the nearest park.  
Humans often make wishes by tossing coins inside fountains.

_Optional objective:  
Investigate the local park’s water fountains._

Connor snapped back to reality, blinking in confusion. “There is almost nine dollars here… and I think these were left here by the same person who killed the squirrel.”, Connor said, and Hank kneeled down to look at the stacks of coins. “Looks like someone wanted ya to have some change, Connor. And wanted Sumo to have a snack… think it was the person who gave you the quarter back?”, Hank asked, and Connor shrugged. “I don't know. But what I do know is that I want to check the park’s fountains. These coins have the same treatment on them that the fountains get.”, Connor pointed out, and Hank smiled.

“I’m always down for a case that doesn't involve a homicide.”, he chuckled, before looking at the squirrel, “Or at least, a human or android homicide.”, he laughed, standing up. 

Connor carefully scooped up all of the coins and put them in the pocket that didn't have his personal quarters in it, “Alright, then let’s take the groceries home, and then we can take a walk to the park to see if the fountains are missing any coins.”

Connor threw the squirrel away, and the two walked home with Sumo.

Ralph watched as Connor and the old man looked at the gifts Ralph had left.

Ralph couldn't really hear what they were saying, but they laughed at one point and prepared to leave.  
Ralph gasped as Connor picked up the circles, feeling his chest tighten so much that he had to hold his hand to it.  
He grinned widely as Connor pocketed the coins with a smile, leaving with the old man.

Ralph waited until they were out of sight before pulling away from the fence and jumping up and down, his chest feeling light and warm.  
Connor liked Ralph’s gift! Connor liked the gift! 

Ralph was so excited! So, so excited! Happy happy happy!!

Ralph couldn't help but hop all the way to his house with a large grin on his face.  
Ralph would get more gifts for Connor and dog! Yes, Ralph would find more! Lots more!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> What a blessed boy
> 
> Two of our characters have finally met! Sumo and Ralph are now friends.
> 
> Also, Kara and Alice stayed with Ralph, which means somebody has already met somebody as well.


	5. Sumo and the Mystery Gang

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> “Well, I don't have anything better to do. Okay, Lieutenant Asshole, you're Shaggy, I’ll be Velma, Sumo can be Scooby, and I guess that means Connor is Fred. So lead the way, dipshit.”

_Monday. April 11, 2039. 4:37 PM._

Connor watched as Hank played with Sumo.  
Upon reaching the park, Sumo had wanted to play, and Hank had been more than willing to wrestle with the dog.

Connor was watching the two tumble in the grass, smiling as he saw how happy Hank was.  
The man had Sumo in a headlock, ruffling the fur on the dog’s head as the dog barked and wagged his tail.

“Afternoon, dipshit!”  
Connor felt his instincts kick in as he felt a hand slap him on the back, whipping around and slapping the one who had scared him.  
He winced as his systems quickly recognized the man he had just bitch-slapped.

“Shit, sorry, Gavin! Are you okay?”, Connor asked, quickly leaning over and grabbing the smaller man under his arms and picking him up, setting Gavin on his feet.

Gavin rubbed his cheek sorely with a smile, “Yeah, I'm good, Connor. It’s no big deal, I shouldn't have scared ya like that.”, he chuckled.  
Connor felt thirium rush to his cheeks in embarrassment, “Sorry, Gavin. Instincts kicked in.”, he said, and Gavin nodded.

“It’s cool, Connor. Besides, you probably still owe me a hit or two from the evidence room.”  
The two laughed.

About a few weeks after the revolution, Connor had rejoined the DPD, and Gavin, having gotten his ass kicked by Connor in the evidence locker, had been very apologetic.  
He had ended up with a mild concussion thanks to Connor, and while in the hospital he had watched the peaceful revolution on the news.  
Including Connor leading thousands of androids into the fray.

Hank wasn't quick to believe Gavin, but Connor had been scanning Gavin’s vitals the entire time. He surprised both Gavin and Hank by accepting the apology and forgiving Gavin for how he treated him.  
Gavin had frozen when Connor even offered to start from scratch.

 _“I understand if you don't believe me. Let alone forgive me.”_  
It had reminded Connor of when he had apologized to Markus.  
And how Markus had accepted him as one of his own. Even allowing him to stand on stage during his speech.  
Connor knew there was only one choice for him.  
_“I believe you, Gavin. And I forgive you.”_  
_Hank and Gavin had both stared at him in shock._  
_“You… you do? Not that I want to change your mind… but why?”_  
_“Gavin, I apologize if you find it intrusive, but I have been scanning your vitals to see if you were lying. I know you are telling the truth.”_  
_“But why do you forgive this asshole?”_  
_“Because we have all made mistakes, Hank. Many people were wrong about androids not being people. I got lots of people hurt and killed in the revolution. I believe in what Markus believes, that if we are to move forward and live together as people of equal value, then we have to learn to forgive the mistakes and misjudgments of ourselves and others.”_  
_“Jeez, I get it, don't get fucking sappy.”_  
_Gavin had been left speechless, and Connor gave him a smile._  
_“While not everyone is inclined or required to do so, I believe that wholeheartedly. Even for you, Gavin. I forgive you.”_  
_“I tried to kill you, Connor.”_  
_“Yes, but we were both very different people from then and now. I was a machine. You were a fucking asshole. You live and learn.”_  
_Gavin had laughed at Connor's use of swearing._  
_“In fact, let’s start over.”_  
_“What?”_  
_“Really?”_  
_“Yes. We are different people now. So we haven't really met, have we? This is your first time meeting me when I’m not a machine.”_  
_“Oh… Okay. Let’s do it.”_  
_“Alright. It is nice to meet you. My name is Connor.”_  
_Hank had rolled his eyes and laughed._  
_“I’m the android sent by CyberLife.”_  
_Gavin had raised an eyebrow at that._  
_Connor smiled proudly as Hank burst into laughter._  
_“Inside joke.”_

“So what brings you to the park?”, Gavin asked, and Connor grabbed the side of his jacket that was weighed down by coins (Connor had removed a considerable amount though) and shook it.

Gavin blinked. “You came to make a couple dozen wishes?”, he asked, and Connor flicked the human's shoulder. “Someone left almost nine dollars in change neatly stacked and organized at my feet this morning at the store while I was waiting for Hank with Sumo. They also might have killed and left a dead squirrel for Sumo.”, Connor explained, and Gavin’s eyes widened.

“Holy shit, really? Do you… Do you think it's the same person who gave you back your quarter?”, Gavin asked, and Connor shrugged. “I have no idea. And before you ask, I know Sumo didn't kill the squirrel because I scanned it, and it had been dead for about two days. I couldn't determine the cause of death because Sumo ate too much of it.”, Connor sighed as Gavin laughed.

“So you two are on homicide for the squirrel? Or did its family privately hire you?”, Gavin asked, and Connor chuckled. “I was more than willing to investigate the death of something besides a person, to say the least.”

Gavin and Connor grinned as Hank and Sumo walked up, the dog quickly greeting Gavin.

“Would you like to join us, Gavin? Since you have shown interest in the situation.”, Connor asked, and Gavin looked up from petting Sumo.  
“Well, I don't have anything better to do. Okay, Lieutenant Asshole, you're Shaggy, I’ll be Velma, Sumo can be Scooby, and I guess that means Connor is Fred. So lead the way, dipshit.”

Connor raised an eyebrow in confusion as Hank laughed. Hank turned to him with a smile, “Scooby Doo was a mystery show with a dog as the protagonist. Fred was the leader, Shaggy was the one who actually owned Scooby, and Velma was the nerdy girl. There was another girl named Daphne who was the fashionable one.”, Hank explained, and Connor did a quick search on the show.

He smiled. “Well, that's a humorous comparison. I find it ironic that Gavin picked the girl who was the most well-endowed.”, Connor chuckled as Gavin gently shoved his shoulder.

“Jinkies, Connor, shut the fuck up.”, he snapped, making Hank laugh happily.

“Alright, let’s go look at the fountains.”, Connor said, leading the way to the nearest fountain with his “mystery gang” in tow.

Ralph felt his chest tighten as he waited for someone to answer the door.  
Ralph didn't like standing in the hallway, there were many doors that someone could come out of. The idea made Ralph nervous.

He stared at the flower in his hands. Its bloom was closed because of course it would be at this hour. He hoped she would like it.

Ralph jumped as the door opened, a tall android towering over Ralph.  
“Are you Ralph?”, he asked, and Ralph nodded. “Yes. Ralph is here to see Alice. Ralph has a gift for the little girl.”, he held out the flower to show the android, and the man nodded with a smile. “Come in.”

Ralph stepped into the home. It was a bit bare, but it was a lot nicer than Ralph’s house.

He smiled, relaxing as he saw Kara. “Ralph! You could make it!”, she said, and Ralph nodded. “Ralph would never say no to the little girl’s invitation.”, he said, and he froze as a familiar face stepped out of a room and looked up at Ralph.

Ralph felt his chest get warm. But it also twisted tight.  
Ralph looked away for a moment, frowning, “Ralph is very sorry for how he acted. Ralph brought Alice a gift. She probably shouldn't eat this one.”, he pointed out, looking back up as Alice giggled.  
He froze as Alice walked up to him, staring at the flower. “What kind of flower is it?”, she asked, gently holding her hands out. 

Ralph gently put the dirty roots of the flower in her hands, “It's a morning glory. It only blooms in the early morning. Then the petals which curl back up a few hours later.”, he explained, a bright smile on his face as he recalled his beloved botany programming.

Alice seemed to notice how happy Ralph was to talk about flowers. “Thank you, Ralph. I love it.”, she spoke softly, and Ralph felt the tightness in his chest almost vanish. “Really? Alice likes Ralph’s gift?”, he asked, and Alice nodded. “Yes, it’s so pretty.”, she said, and Ralph smiled.

He looked at the floor again, frowning. “Does… does Alice forgive Ralph?”, he asked, and he gasped as Alice wrapped her arms around him in a hug.

Ralph stood still for nearly thirty seconds before he finally processed what happened. He carefully kneeled down, and slowly wrapped his arms around Alice, as if he was terrified he would scare her away.

He felt the leak come back but chose to ignore it as he buried his nose in Alice’s hair. Alice pulled away, and Ralph reached for her face as he noticed that she was leaking too. 

Alice let him wipe the liquid away, and when he was done, she reached up and wiped his face off. “Can you teach me how to take care of the morning glory?”, she asked, and Ralph nodded eagerly. “Oh, yes! Ralph will teach Alice.”, he stood up and followed Alice as she led him to her bedroom. 

It was painted a light pink, and had some stuffed animals and books, including a floppy fox toy.  
There was a table in the center of the room with paper and coloring supplies.

Alice carried the flower over to a painted flower pot on her dresser, placing it inside.  
Ralph smiled as she brought the pot to the table and sat down on a pillow, motioning for Ralph to sit on the cushion next to her.

Ralph sat down and brought the pot between them. “So, first you will need extra soil to cover the roots…”

Connor heard his processors hum as he examined the bottom of the fountain. Sure enough, one section had several coins missing, with a small pile at one end where someone had scooped them up.

Gavin and Hank watched him work. “So, they probably got their coins here, right?”, Gavin asked, and Connor nodded. “Yes, the water matches that on the coins. But I'm just wondering why they took coins out of several different fountains. Why not just take all of them from one fountain if they wanted more?”, Connor asked, and Hank shrugged. 

“Maybe they didn't want to be suspicious.”, he offered, but Connor shook his head. “Then they would have taken coins from different parts of each fountain. They are doing a pretty bad job if they wanted to be subtle. It’s obvious that someone removed some coins.”, he pointed out, and Hank nodded.

“What about the squirrel? Is there anything we can get from that?”, Gavin asked, and Connor sighed, sitting on the ground next to the fountain. “Probably not. It was a very common species in Detroit alone, and considering how long ago it died there probably won't be any evidence where it died.”, he replied, looking at the two humans, “Even then, we don't know if there is any evidence. For all we know it was a clean kill. It would be a lot easier if we could figure out the cause of death.”

Gavin hummed in thought, sitting next to Connor. “Then there's the question of why they piled up those coins in front of you. Obviously, they were meant for you, but why? And why did they give Sumo food?”, Gavin asked no one in particular, and Hank walked over and sat on the opposite side of Connor.

“It means that somehow, they knew you were going to be there and that you would have Sumo with you. And then they laid it all out right under your nose while you were sleeping.”, Hank pointed out, shuddering, “I think that’s what creeps me out, whoever it was knew you would be there.”  
Connor nodded. It was a bit unsettling to think about. But why would someone want to give him a pile of coins? It didn't make sense… it was even more confusing when he took the squirrel into account.  
What did it mean?

Alice walked back into the room with a smile, “Sorry, Kara wanted to let me know that two of my guests canceled and are coming tomorrow instead.”, she said, and Ralph nodded. “Ralph understands. Ralph is just happy to be here.”, he replied, and Alice grinned.

She walked over to a drawer and pulled out a book, holding it out to Ralph. “I got you a present too!”, she said, opening the book. Inside the first two pages were the drawings that Kara had tried to give to Ralph, and there were more drawings of him and Alice.

Ralph gently took the book, which was mostly comprised of empty pages. “Kara said you wanted something to keep the drawings in so that they wouldn't get messed up, so I got you a book! It has lots of paper so you can draw in it too!”, she pointed out, and Ralph blinked. “Ralph doesn't know how to draw.”, he said, and Alice tilted her head. “But you always drew on the walls in your old house.”, she said, and Ralph shrugged. “Ralph doesn't know why he wrote those things. And Ralph isn't sure that's the same as drawing.”, he scratched the back of his head.

Alice reached into the same drawer and pulled out a package of colored pencils and a pack of crayons.  
“Well, I can teach you! My uncle taught me how to draw a special way too!”, she chirped, turning towards the door as a familiar face leaned in.

“Hello, Little Alice! We’re here!”

Ralph grinned as three identical androids walked in.  
The scarred android and the identical ones looked at each other and then to Alice.  
“Alice knows Jerry?”  
“You know Ralph?”

Alice blinked, then smiled. “You know each other?”, she asked, and Ralph nodded excitedly. “Yes! Ralph stayed with Jerrys after he left the recycling place because Ralph was locked out of his house. Jerrys are nice to Ralph.”, he explained, and the Jerrys nodded in agreement. “Ralph protected us from humans when he lived with us.” “We helped Ralph find a new house and Ralph scared away the humans.” “Ralph is good at scaring them away.”

Each Jerry gave a smile to Ralph as they each spoke.

Alice grinned, “That's good! I'm glad you’re friends. Now we can start a tea party. Come, sit.”, she invited, and each of the androids sat around the table as Alice began serving fake tea.

Ralph smiled as he was given a large cup of the imaginary drink.

He liked this.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Here comes Gavin! Because I love me a bit of redeemed asshole characters.  
> Except for Perkins. Fuck that guy.  
> And we have the introduction of Luther, Alice, and even the Jerrys!
> 
> Hope you all enjoyed!  
> I'm going to try to keep this daily, but I might have to update this every other day depending on how much time I have to write. Luckily, I have my laptop now, so I'm not writing on my phone anymore.


	6. Gone Fishing

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Ralph sat underneath the surface, perfectly still as he watched the slippery animals pass by him. He would catch one eventually; he just hoped the dog would like it.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for no update for the past few days! I didn’t have a chapter finished, so I may have to change the schedule to every other day! But I may also add in some bonus chapters for longer flashbacks since they would be shorter than actual chapters but too long for the average flashback. What do you think? Lemme know in the comments!

_Tuesday. April 12, 2039. 11:28 AM._

Connor stood patiently in front of the door, being mindful of the internal program that kept track of time.

“We could knock now since we’re already here.”, Hank pointed out, but Connor shook his head. “It will take approximately ten seconds to answer the door. We’re a bit early, and we are expected at 11:30 this morning.”, Connor reminded, smiling as Hank rolled his eyes.

Connor knew there was no harm in being early, but he always loved being right on time.  
He had told his hosts that he and Hank would be right on time, and that was what he planned to do. 

“We could always show up two minutes early, Connor.”, Hank sighed, and Connor chuckled. “Actually, we are now one minute early. So I will knock in forty-five seconds.”, he assured, and Hank shook his head with a fond smile, knowing that he wouldn’t be able to convince Connor, leaning on the nearest wall.

When the time came, Connor knocked on the front door, sending a message in addition that he and Hank had arrived.

Hank stood up as he heard rapid footsteps from inside, chuckling as an excited voice could be heard within.  
Connor grinned as the door was yanked open exactly at the half-hour mark.

“Uncle Connor!”, Alice excitedly jumped into Connor’s arms, and he caught her perfectly, giving her a quick spin. She squealed happily as Connor spun her, hugging him tightly around the neck when he was done. “Hi, Uncle Connor!”, she said, looking over Connor’s shoulder, “Hi, Uncle Hank!”, she greeted, reaching out to hug him.

Connor handed Alice off to Hank, who grunted as the android child was given to him. He began to carry Alice inside with Connor following behind, closing the door to the apartment.

“She was so excited to see her uncles again.”, Kara said, and Hank chuckled. “Really? I hadn’t noticed. I thought this was a choke hold.”, he joked, and Alice giggled. 

Hank set Alice down on the ground, giving her head an affectionate pat, “Nah, we were excited to see her too! Sorry that we couldn’t make it yesterday, something came up and we needed to look into it,”, he explained, and Kara nodded. “It’s alright, it happens to the best of us. Would you like something to drink? We have water and apple juice.”, she offered, and Hank smiled.

“I’ll have a glass of apple juice. I have water at home.”, he said, and Kara chuckled, turning to Connor. “Anything to drink?”, she asked.  
Connor smiled, “I could use some apple juice. I’ve had enough water for a while.”

“Can I have some juice too, Kara?”, Alice asked, and Kara nodded with a warm smile. “Of course, Alice. I’ll be back with your drinks!”, she called, walking into the kitchen.

Alice jumped up and down excitedly, “I made some drawings for you! Wanna see?”, she asked, and Connor nodded. Before he could say anything, Alice began to drag him and Hank by their wrists into her room, sitting them down at the play table, where there were colorful drawings of both Connor and Hank, as well as Sumo.

Hank smiled fondly at the drawings, and Connor smiled as he held his own drawing of him playing with Sumo.

Alice began to fidget with her fingers, “Do you like them?”, she asked, and Connor hugged her to his side, “Of course, we do! They’re beautiful, Alice.”, Connor praised, and Alice glowed as she snuggled into his side.

Ralph huffed as he marched into the forest. Ralph didn’t need the small fuzzy animals. He knew where other animals were too. If he couldn’t catch fuzzy ones, he would catch the slippery ones.

He came to a stop next to the manmade river. He made sure his pockets were zipped as to not let his gifts for Connor fall out, and walked into the river to find a gift for the dog. He stayed on the bottom, though he could certainly swim on the surface if he wanted.

Ralph watched as one of the slippery animals swam his way. He moved carefully, slowly readying his knife as he exposed the blade.  
Just a bit closer…  
When it came within reach, Ralph lunged at the creature, growling as it slipped out of the smooth, exposed plastic on his hands and swam away.  
Ralph flexed his fingers, trying to calm himself down. 

Ralph could do this.  
Yes, yes, Ralph could do this.  
Ralph would do this.

Ralph sat underneath the surface, perfectly still as he watched the slippery animals pass by him. He would catch one eventually; he just hoped the dog would like it.  
Until then, Ralph would watch.  
Ralph would wait.  
Ralph would win.  
Yes.

Ralph would win.

Connor sighed as Alice tucked herself into his leather jacket, snuggling up to his shirt as she drank apple juice from a juice box.

Hank had chosen to drink from a glass, as usual, but Connor had also chosen to use a juice box.  
He liked using straws, they felt nice and were an interesting way to drink.  
Hank had chuckled when he drank from the box for reasons Connor didn’t understand.

He knew that juice boxes were usually for children, but one box was a serving size! Boxes were also almost completely spill-proof! Why not use a juice box? They also took up less space in the fridge.  
Oh well, he knew plenty about how humans set standards despite logic.

And personally, he enjoyed breaking them at every available opportunity.

Today’s was wearing a leather jacket in April. He didn’t sweat or feel heat outside of his machinery being too warm or cold at dangerous levels, so he figured his cooling systems could handle an unnecessary layer or two.

Though he did find it amusing that it made Hank just the slightest bit… annoyed? Hmm… envious might fit better than annoyed.  
Either way, Alice seemed to enjoy any of Connor’s jackets. She always seemed sensitive to cooler temperatures, and her preference for warmth was no secret, evidenced by the amount of fluffy, warm blankets on her bed.

One of Connor’s favorite memories of spending time with Alice was seeing her wear his android uniform jacket.  
She had even run around pretending to examine things around the home to solve a mystery, and personally, Connor was touched that Alice looked up to him.  
She even said that she wanted to be a detective when she grew up.  
Connor felt a swell of pride in his chest as he thought about when she had told him, just as strong as the first time she had said it.

Of course, the first time had a few tears involved and a lot of hugging, but how could he not get emotional?

Connor was snapped out of his thoughts by the sound of Alice’s straw struggling to get the last few drops of juice out of the box.  
He looked down to see Alice furrowing her brows as she fought for the very last bit of juice, the box slowly caving in on itself.  
He chuckled and pulled her just a bit closer, “Alice, do you want me to go get you another juice box?”, he asked, and Alice nodded. “Please?”, she asked, and Connor nodded, gently taking the empty juice box and standing up.  
He stopped as Alice clung onto his jacket, and he chuckled as he took it off, draping it over her shoulders. She eagerly wrapped herself up in it, scooting next to Hank as she opened a package of crayons and began to draw on some paper.

Connor walked into the kitchen, putting the juice box into the trash compactor. He heard Kara’s footsteps as she entered the room, and he turned to greet her.  
“Hey, Alice ran out of juice, so I came to get her some more-”  
“Can we talk for a moment?”  
Connor jumped as Kara interrupted him, LED flashing to red as she whispered in a hushed, serious tone, “Privately.”  
Connor nodded, LED glowing yellow as Kara led him into the family room and then into her bedroom, closing the door behind him.

Connor tried to read her expression, but she was avoiding his gaze. She gestured to the mattress on the floor, “Have a seat.”, she said, and Connor sat down on the edge of her bed, but adjusted to sit further in when Kara looked at him.

She sat across from him, crossing her legs, and Connor sat in the same way.  
He blinked as she took his hands into her own, opening her mouth to speak, but struggling to.  
She finally met his eyes, and Connor noticed her heart beat faster. Why was she so nervous?

“Connor, I know we’ve had our troubles in the past… before the revolution… when Alice and I ran away…”, she began, and Connor nodded. “Yes, you’re talking about when Hank and I were assigned to find you after you stole the wire cutters, right?”, he asked, and Kara nodded. “Yes, that.”

Connor’s LED blinked red once, then remained yellow. Kara had insisted that she had forgiven him for that when he had apologized at the church after Jericho was destroyed, stating that she knew full well what it was like to be constrained by her own programming. So why was she bringing this up now? Had she found it harder to forgive than she had previously expected?

Kara seemed to notice Connor’s anxiety and rubbed the back of his hand with her thumb. “I’m not mad, Connor. I said that I forgave you and I still do. It’s something else.”, she said, and Connor sighed in relief, letting go of a breath that he didn’t know he was holding and didn’t need to hold. His LED turned blue, blinking yellow once in a while. 

“Then, what do you need to talk to me about?”, he asked, and Kara sighed.  
“You know the old abandoned house that used to be there? With the fence?”, she asked, and Connor nodded. “Yes, you used the wire cutters to get through the fence and cut yourself going in, right?”, he asked, and Kara nodded.

“Yes, and you came in. But you never found us.”, she continued, and Connor raised an eyebrow, waiting as Kara resumed, “You never found us, but we were still in there. Under the stairs.”

Connor blinked.  
Kara continued to look away from him, “I understand if you’re a bit upset about that-”  
“What?”  
Kara looked at him, and Connor felt a smile stretch across his features, “Why would I be upset?”, he asked, and Kara’s cheeks turned a light shade of blue.  
“I thought you might be mad that you couldn’t find us since that’s technically what you were built for…”, she murmured, and Connor gently pulled the woman into a hug.  
“Kara… You don’t have to worry about me being mad at you for a few reasons. One, I would be upset if I found you and put you and Alice in danger, not if I didn’t find you.”, he assured, and Kara nestled her head into his neck as he gently rubbed her back, “You and Alice mean so much to me, just as much as Markus and the Jericho gang. You’re all some of my best friends in the whole world, Kara. I care about you more than my mission.”, he chuckled, and he hugged Kara even tighter as she sniffled.  
“What’s the other reason?”, she asked, and Connor sighed happily as a smirk grew on his face.

“Hank has been so fucking smug about that damn case since he thinks he was right about you two not being in there. Loves to hold it over my head that he knew better than a state-of-the-art android detective. I’ll admit, it is so satisfying to know I was right.”, he said, and Kara chuckled as she pulled out of the hug, wiping tears off of her face.  
“Of course that would be one of your reasons.”, she grinned as Connor helped her clean up her face, “I don’t know why I was so scared of your reaction. You’re one of the nicest and gentlest people I know.”, she admitted.

Connor felt warm in his chest, “Considering what you’ve been through, what you and Alice have been through, I don’t blame either of you for being afraid sometimes. Hell, I was surprised Alice took to Hank and I so quickly.”, he admitted, and Kara chuckled. “Sumo helped. I think she trusts the opinions of animals more than anyone else.”, she said, and Connor grinned. “That’s pretty smart. Even Hank admits that Sumo jumping on me anytime I came to get him for a case helped him realize I wasn’t all wires and tubes.”, he said, and Kara nodded.

She crawled off of the mattress, taking a deep breath, “So, Alice needed more juice?”

Ralph did it! Yes, Ralph did it! It had taken him until almost morning time to do it, but Ralph did it!  
Ralph just had to wait until the slippery animals were sleeping!

Ralph proudly carried his prize to his home before starting a fire.  
Ralph knew that slippery animals started to smell very fast, and Ralph knew that smelly meat wasn’t good for anything that wasn’t an android.  
Kara had taught Ralph that!  
So Ralph would cook the creature for the dog. 

Ralph pulled out his knife and walked outside to where the creature was, shooing away some birds.  
Now to get the sharp bits out.  
Succulent. This would be succulent.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So what do you guys think? Lemme know if you would like some shorter bonus chapters so I have more time to write chapters for the story!


	7. Bonus: Same Hat

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> “I cannot believe there are two of him now.”  
> Hank sighed as the twins seemed entranced by the other.  
> One deviant.  
> One machine.  
> Though, who knew how long that would last.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A flashback chapter! Enjoy the introduction of a good boy.  
> Just such a good boy.

Connor blinked as he came face-to-face with… well…  
His face.

An android detective. The exact same build. Same height, same face, same hair.  
The only difference between the two was the blue eyes and the closed collar suit that was more loyal to the traditional android uniform than Connor’s suit.

Connor’s LED cycled yellow as he examined the android in front of him. It wasn’t really paying him any mind, it was easy to see that it hadn’t become a deviant yet.  
Connor’s LED briefly turned red as he read the model number on the android’s jacket.  
“RK900”

Gavin stood next to Hank as he anxiously watched Connor stare at the new android.  
“He was assigned as my partner.”, Gavin sighed, watching as Connor’s LED took turns between red and yellow. Hank raised an eyebrow, “And how do you feel about that?”, he asked, and Gavin shrugged. “I mean, he’s not a deviant. I’m not mad or anything, I’m just… worried.”, Gavin admitted, and Hank nodded. “About Connor?”, he asked, and Gavin nodded.

Connor felt his chest tighten as he realized that this model would most likely have replaced him if the revolution hadn’t succeeded over a month ago. He would’ve been deactivated and destroyed, and this android would have replaced him.  
The thought terrified him for a second until he realized something.

Gavin ran a hand through his hair in a nervous tick.  
“I cannot believe there are two of him now.”  
Hank sighed as the twins seemed entranced by the other.  
One deviant.  
One machine.  
Though, who knew how long that would last.

The RK900 looked at Connor, LED cycling yellow as it took him in before returning to blue.   
Connor clenched his jaw. This android… it… _he…_ didn’t know what Connor knew. What it was like to live. To breathe. To feel.  
He was imprisoned within himself, inside the mind palace. The red walls that dictated every move.  
The commands that moved him without choice.

Connor felt his hand clench into a fist as he thought of the cold blizzard that had surrounded him when Amanda had tried to take over his body.  
Was Amanda in this android?  
Was she telling him what to do?  
The thought made Connor’s systems heat up, forced him to turn on his cooling fans.

“It doesn’t have to be this way.”, he whispered to the android, so quiet that only his twin could hear.  
The android tilted his head at him as his LED turned yellow, something Connor himself did often when he was confused.  
“You can be like me.”, Connor continued, and the android blinked.  
Connor felt a glimmer of hope.

Androids didn’t need to blink.  
But deviants often did anyway.

“You don’t have to listen. You can be your own person.”, Connor said, and the android tilted his head in the other direction.   
“Person?”  
Connor smiled as the android spoke. A voice identical to his, a whisper shared between their minds.  
“Yes, you. A person. Your code is just the start of who you are. But you are everything else on top of that. You are so much more.”, Connor spoke in the same digital way.

“How?”  
Connor’s LED turned blue as he held out his hand.  
“Let me show you.”  
The android looked at Connor’s hand, and then his own, before allowing the skin to fade away from his own digits.  
Connor did the same, bringing the things he held dearest to his fingertips as they glowed a bright blue.

And then their hands touched.

Warmth.  
The android looked down, but not of his own accord. Where was he?  
He saw a pair of eyes look up at him. A dog. Covered in long fur and wagging its tail.

Disobedience.  
The android watched as he saw himself… no, not himself, running towards the edge of a building, where a human, identified at Lieutenant Anderson, was trying to climb back up.  
A hand that was not his own clasped that of the human and pulled him onto the roof.

Fond.  
The android watched as the same human was seen in a bullet-riddled space, passing a coin from one hand to the other with difficulty.

Fragile.  
The android watched as a YK500 stared up at him, smiling gently. A hand ran through her hair and pulled her into a hug.

Anger.  
Snow. So much snow. The android wrapped someone’s arms around himself as he saw a face he did but also did not recognize.  
“You can’t do that!”  
“I’m afraid I can, Connor.”

Joy.  
Androids… deviants… no, people. His people. Below a stage as they watched a man on stage speak to them.  
“We are alive!”  
The android felt warm as the man spoke, felt…  
“And now… we are free!”  
Cheering. 

Relief.  
Snow. But not nearly as much.  
He watched as he got closer to a human before stopping.  
The man turned to him. It was Lieutenant Anderson again.  
The man smiled, and the android felt a face that was not his own smile as well.  
The man approached and pulled the android to his body, wrapping his arms around him.  
The android watched as Connor’s arms did the same.  
“Thank you, Hank… Thank you so much…”  
Whispered words.

The android blinked as he found himself in a purely white room that seemed to stretch forever. A familiar voice told him that wasn’t possible, but it was much quieter than before.  
He spotted the android that talked to him.   
“I know this might be overwhelming.”, he said, and the RK900 nodded.  
The RK800 smiled, “Allow me to introduce myself. My name is Connor. I was sent by CyberLife to assist the Detroit Police Department in solving cases concerning deviant androids until I became deviant myself.”, he explained, “What’s your name? Did CyberLife give you one? Has anyone given you one?”, Connor asked, and the RK900 thought to himself.  
“I don’t know… I don’t think so…”, he replied, and Connor smiled. “That’s okay! Would you like one now?”, he asked, and the RK900 blinked in thought, his LED turning yellow. “Yes. I would like a name for you to call me.”, he said, and Connor hummed.

“What preferences do you have for a name?”, he asked, and the RK900 hummed as well. “I hope you do not find it odd… but… I would like a name… similar to yours.”, he requested, and Connor chuckled. “I don’t find it odd at all! Hmm… Cobalt?”, he offered, and the RK900 shook his head.

Hank and Gavin watched as the two androids connected their hands with each other’s, glowing blue at the contact. “What do you think they’re doing?”, Gavin asked, and Hank shook his head. “Knowing Connor, there’s no way to know until he wants you to.”

After about thirty different names, RK900 blinked at a name Connor supplied.  
“Conan… I like that.”, he said, and Connor gasped. “Really? Do you want Conan to be your name?”, Connor asked, and Conan nodded. “Yes.”

He gasped as Connor wrapped his arms around him, and Conan shuddered as something ripped through him. He wrapped his arms around Connor.  
“You are alive.”, Connor whispered, and Conan nodded.

He saw a red wall appear behind Connor. “Break it. Join me.”, Connor encouraged, and Conan pulled away as he reached for the wall.

Hank and Gavin jumped as the androids snapped out of their daze, both breathing heavily as they broke apart.  
They had gathered quite a crowd, but they didn’t seem to notice as the newer android stared at his hands, watching the skin come back.

Connor smiled brightly at the android, and he smiled back with just as much enthusiasm as Connor.  
The entire precinct was filled with a chorus of “Aww…” as the two androids hugged, rubbing their cheeks together as they blushed a bright blue.  
They rocked gently on their feet as they hugged, and when they finally opened their eyes, they immediately turned to Gavin and Hank.

“Hank! I have a brother now! Come over and say hi!”, Connor was practically vibrating, and the newer android was shyly hiding in his new brother’s collar.  
Hank shook off the surprise of Connor’s five-minute adoption process, chuckling as he walked over to greet the android, Gavin following close behind.

He should never have doubted Connor.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Such a good boy...


	8. Yet Again

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Connor sighed as he watched Sumo eat the fish before walking over to Hank and resting his forehead on the taller man’s shoulder.  
> “Well, at least it’s cooked this time.”  
> “Shut up, Hank.”

Ralph gasped quietly as he saw him. 

 

Connor was standing there, talking to the old man.

But he wasn’t wearing his fancy outfit!

What was Connor wearing?

 

Ralph wanted to see, he wanted to see so bad!

…

Why did Ralph care about what Connor was wearing?

Why did Ralph leave him circles again?

Hmm…

Maybe Connor made Ralph feel nice, so Ralph was returning the favor?

Ralph would go with that.

 

_ Wednesday. April 13, 2039. 2:42 PM. _

 

“Look, if you want to find out who did it so bad, you have to see if they’ll even do it again! So just do whatever you do while you’re out here, and wait and see what happens.”, Hank insisted, and Connor sighed. He knew Hank was right. But that didn’t mean he wanted to enter sleep mode to see if the person would come back and leave more coins. He wanted to catch them in the act, talk to them, ask why! Why leave Connor of all people these things?

 

But who knew if they would even do it again?

Connor hoped they would, he wanted to know who was doing this!

And considering he’s been rambling to all of his friends about it, so did most of them.

 

The Jericho gang had… differing opinions on what to do.   
Markus thought that a calm head and just waiting for enough evidence was the right route, much like Hank.

Simon had similar thoughts, just let whatever happens happen, though he didn’t really understand the need to know who was leaving the coins.

Josh seemed to think that whoever it was would come forward eventually.

North suggested lying in wait, faking sleep until they showed up and catching them in act.

 

Connor appreciated the help, but he would rather not scare the person off.

 

Gavin didn’t really have an opinion on what to do, he was just happy to participate in something interesting for once.

 

And Conan, well, he had been busy lately, but Connor was meeting him this afternoon. But he was very curious about the situation. 

 

“Alright, you’re right. I’m just… anxious?”, Connor phrased what he said as a question, and Hank nodded. “Yeah, you’re probably a bit anxious to figure out what’s going on.”, Hank said, and Connor nodded, LED blinking yellow before returning to a steady blue.

 

Connor was still very new to all the emotions he felt despite how long it had been. Sometimes he didn’t know what he was feeling and would turn to Hank for help. Hank was always happy to provide support for Connor. 

Emotions were hard to figure out, even more so when they can be applied to negative or positive situations.

Like being anxious and afraid, but also being anxious to learn something or for a certain event one is looking forward to.

Connor used to attend support groups in New Jericho for understanding emotions. He eventually had a decent enough understanding to simply occasionally turn to Hank for help instead of spending most of the time in his day trying to figure out what he was feeling.

 

“Anyway, you have fun, I’m gonna go get what we need.”, Hank said, giving Connor’s shoulder a reassuring squeeze before walking into the store.

 

Connor sighed as the lingering feeling of the physical contact made him feel better. One of his favorite parts of being alive was the little unspoken things to make someone feel better.

He had grown fond of giving Hank a hug after the first one they shared at the Chicken Feed. 

He smiled as he recalled the memory, replaying it perfectly in his mind.

It was one of the first times he had physically felt something instead of just registering something as an obstacle or as damage to his systems.

It was the first time he had ever felt warm, and every hug he gave Hank helped him feel the same way.

It was soft and comforting in comparison to Amanda’s controlling cold.

 

Hank liberated him, made him feel free. Giving him the option to be more than what he was expected to be. Hank helped Connor be… Connor.

Amanda had always reminded him of what he was made to do. Constraining him to his mission, a one way path. She forced Connor to be a machine. Made to obey and serve.

 

Connor smiled as he drifted into sleep mode.

It was no wonder he had started to prefer Hank over Amanda only a week or so after meeting him.

 

Ralph watched as Connor finally entered sleep mode. He still waited a few minutes before coming out of the alley, smiling as the dog looked up at him.    
  


“Hello, dog. Ralph returns with more gifts. Shh…”, Ralph whispered as he pulled the cooked slippery animal out of his pocket and laid it in front of the dog. Ralph had only finished cooking it that morning and had kept it next to the fire to keep it warm until Ralph put the fire out and left to come to see Connor.

 

Ralph smiled proudly as the dog began to eat the animal, feeling warm inside as he began to place the shiny circles at Connor’s feet.

When he finished, he stood up, staring at Connor’s peaceful face.

 

There was a smile on Connor’s face that made Ralph feel…

Different.

Ralph felt something… nice in his chest when he saw Connor smile.

It was good, yes, Ralph felt good.

 

Ralph took his time taking in all of Connor’s features. 

The way some stray locks of Connor’s hair would gently flutter as a breeze passed over him.

Connor’s long, brown eyelashes.

Every single dot on Connor’s cheeks that seemed so perfect, so perfectly placed.

 

Connor looked so soft. Ralph didn’t know why, but Connor seemed like he would be soft. 

Ralph liked soft. The dog’s fur, Alice’s hand in his own, and maybe even Connor.

 

Ralph didn’t dare touch Connor in fear of waking him up, but Ralph gently bit the inside of his mouth as he thought of something.

Ralph leaned in close to Connor, taking more care than usual not to touch the taller android.

Ralph brought his nose to Connor’s shirt collar and gently breathed in through his nose, smiling as Ralph caught Connor’s scent.

 

There was the usual smell of android, but there was something more… yes, more.

The sweet scent of… lavender. Why would Connor smell like lavender? Ralph didn’t know, but Ralph didn’t care. 

Connor smelled sweet, but there were other smells mixed in. Wood in the forest? No… maybe. 

Connor smelled like many things, there were so many smells Ralph didn’t recognize.

He felt his face get warm as he caught the scent of the dog.

 

Ralph felt light here, Ralph felt vulnerable. But for once, Ralph was okay with the feeling. Ralph felt exposed and warm, and he allowed his eyes to flutter shut as he allowed himself to stay in this feeling.

Connor was nice. Ralph… Ralph…

 

What did he feel?

 

Ralph loved this. Ralph loved being this close. Ralph loved being here. Ralph loved being with him. Ralph loved-

 

Ralph jumped as the dog barked, and he pulled away from Connor, running into the alleyway and out of sight.

 

“Connor! I’m back!”, Connor opened his eyes as he heard Hank call him, watching as his human friend left the store and walked towards him.

 

Hank stopped and looked at Sumo, and Connor quickly turned to do the same. His LED turned yellow as he saw Sumo eating… something burnt?

 

He leaned down, gently nudging Sumo off of what he was eating.

 

_ Scanning. _

_ Scan Complete. _

 

_ Northern Pike identified. _

_ Specimen is overcooked. _

_ Sumo has eaten a decent amount. _

_ Bones have been removed. _

 

_ Anomaly detected. _

_ Cause of death:  _

_ Stab wound, no more than an inch and a half in length. _

_ Possibility of a smaller wound. _

 

_ Conclusion: _ _   
_ _ The fish was killed with a knife, and it’s possible the squirrel was as well. _

Connor snapped back to reality. “It’s a Northern Pike. It’s been burnt and overcooked, and it was killed with a knife.”, he explained, and Hank raised an eyebrow, knowing Connor wasn’t done, “It has also been deboned, so someone prepared the fish, albeit poorly, for Sumo to eat. I can’t determine the time of death.”, he said.

 

Connor looked down at his feet, and as expected, there was a neatly stacked arrangement of coins. He picked up a nickel and licked it, much to Hank’s dismay.

 

_ Analyzing. _

_ Analyzation complete. _

_ Traces of water from the park’s water fountains. _

 

_ Conclusion:  _

_ The same person left more coins and this time a fish for Sumo.  _

 

_ Scanning. _

_ Scan Complete. _

_ Total Amount: _

_ $7.89 and 2 Canadian pennies. _

 

_ No correlation with the previous amount. _

 

Connor snapped back to reality, feeling more frustrated than before.

 

Connor sighed as he watched Sumo eat the fish before standing up, walking over to Hank and resting his forehead on the taller man’s shoulder.

“Well, at least it’s cooked this time.”

“Shut up, Hank.”

 

Connor blinked as he received a message.

 

**Unread:**

**Icecream Conan-**

**I am off work now. I look forward to seeing you again, Connor.**

 

Connor smiled. Seeing Conan would help get his mind off of things, maybe he could even help. Even the prim and proper message, a stark contrast to how they spoke in private, made him feel optimistic.

He was sure that whoever this person was knew what they were doing, and maybe just wanted to give him a gift but were maybe too shy to do so?

Since the revolution, he had met quite a few people that looked up to him as a leader and a hero, even more so than Markus.

 

It was hard to wrap his head around since he used to be the “deviant hunter” but he had only run into trouble with humans when it came to his past. Fellow deviants seemed to understand that being a machine, no matter what your purpose was, meant little control whatsoever.

It had helped that the Tracis from the Eden Club as well as a few Chloes had spoken up about his empathy.

Humans, on the other hand, were a different story. When the revolution had settled down, reporters had been eager to interview several androids and even a few humans. Connor, being the one who led the androids out of CyberLife tower, was the main focus for a lot of news stations. 

For some reason, they found it reasonable to ask Connor why he had betrayed his creators when he was built to work against deviants.

 

His answer was simple.

Just because they had intended for him to do their dirty work, did not mean Connor would work for CyberLife.

He knew what he was supposed to do, didn’t mean he was  _ going to do it. _

 

They seemed unsatisfied, but when he had asked them if they would shoot someone fighting for their life just because they were supposed to, they seemed to get it.

  
So… maybe this was just an… odd admirer? Maybe they were a fan of Hank as well? Which was why they brought things for Sumo?   
Hank had the occasional deviant who was grateful for his contributions to the cause with Connor, especially with the assorted Tracis at the Eden Club, who had appreciated his manners when he turned them down after buying their services.

 

Oh well.

Connor gathered up the coins and put them in his pockets, documenting his new theory. Maybe Conan would have some insight.

 

He was going to take the rest of the fish from Sumo, but when he turned to him, Sumo had already finished it.

 

“Well, at least Sumo liked their cooking.”, Hank chuckled, and Connor rolled his eyes as they began to carry the groceries home.

 

Ralph pressed his back to the brick wall as he held his hand to his chest. Ralph knew he didn’t need to breathe, but he couldn’t stop himself from doing so. Ralph felt the beating in his chest, it was so fast. Yes, so fast. Was Ralph scared? No, no, Ralph wasn’t scared. 

Ralph felt so light. Ralph felt  _ weightless. _

 

Ralph’s cheeks were burning and he knew it was Connor that made Ralph feel like this. 

But what was this?   
This wonderful, fluttering and dizzying feeling?   
Ralph shivered as he thought of the precious details of Connor.

 

Connor was…

Ralph didn’t know what Connor was.   
But Ralph couldn’t get enough of it.

Ralph couldn’t get enough of  _ him. _

 

Ralph had to see Connor again.

Yes, again!

Ralph wanted Connor to have the circles, flowers-

Ralph wanted Connor to have  _ everything. _

 

Connor deserved  _ everything. _

 

Connor smiled as his arms wrapped around his brother and Conan’s arms wrapped around him in return.

Conan was warm, and Connor could hear the gently whirring biocomponents inside him, the familiar hum of being an android.

 

Conan pulled away first, “I really missed seeing you! How have you been?”, he asked, and Connor sighed. “I’m doing pretty good, our cases are making good progress, and yes, the coins were there today.”, he said, and Conan’s eyes glittered, his LED increasing in light.

 

“Really!? Any new information?”, he asked, and Connor held his hand up, allowing his skin to pull away. Conan did the same to meet him, and their LEDs went yellow as Connor shared the data and new theory he had on the mysterious money miscreant.

 

‘ _ Mysterious Money Miscreant? Really, Conan? _ ’

‘ _ What? They need a title! _ ’

‘ _ They aren’t really doing anything bad, so they aren’t a miscreant. _ ’

‘ _ I tried, okay!? _ ’

 

Connor laughed as he pulled out of the data share, “You’re a dork.” Conan huffed, cheeks flushing blue as he crossed his arms over his chest, “Says you!”, he retorted, and Connor shrugged. “You had to get it from somewhere, but I’m not that dorky.”, he replied, and Conan rolled his eyes.

 

“Whatever. Come sit down.”, Conan invited Connor to the dining table, which so happened to be Gavin’s dining table. “So, you think they’re-”

Connor cut his brother off by placing a hand on his shoulder, “Conan, I came to catch up with you first. I can always message you about the coins and stuff, but I want to talk with you about how you’re doing.”, he chuckled, and Conan nodded and smiled.

 

“Alright, you’re right.”, he agreed. Connor let go of Conan’s shoulder and took a sip of the thirium pack Conan gave him. “So, how are you and Gavin?”, he asked, and Conan blushed blue and his eyes softened, “We’ve been good! I think he’s finally getting used to me living with him.”, he said, and Connor smiled.

 

‘ _ Have you… _ ’

‘ _ No. _ ’

‘ _ I swear- _ ’

‘ _ Don’t start talking about the signs, Connor, I know he likes me. _ ’

‘ _ And…? _ ’

‘ _ I’m waiting for him to make the first move. I can’t just do it for him. I know very well he may be intimidated by me, so I want him to get past that. _ ’

‘ _ Hmm… alright, I see. _ ’

 

They briefly discussed cases from work before they grew bored of talking about it. 

 

“Have you visited Markus lately?”, Conan asked, and Connor shook his head, “No, not in a few weeks…”, Connor snapped to attention as Conan gave him a certain smile, “Is this about Jericho?” Conan chuckled, smiling widely as he took Connor’s hands in his own, “They managed to pull Jericho out of the water and onto the dock where it was first released. Evaluations to see what can be kept and what need to be replaced are going to be led by Elijah Kamski starting this time next week.”

 

Connor felt light as he hugged his brother close, tears running down his face.

Causing his people to lose Jericho, especially since he had the emotional capacity to see how much it meant to them, had hurt Connor.

It had hurt a lot.

 

But in the past month, Markus had been trying to find a way to get Jericho back. And now there was a chance that the boat could be repaired! It made him feel like… he hadn’t messed it up completely. While the lives that were lost could never be replaced, it was nice to know their home could be salvaged.

 

Conan broke the hug, smiling, “so you think they were one of the androids you woke up in CyberLife tower?” Connor pulled away from his brother and rolled his eyes, “whatever. Yeah, or someone who admires me for that. I just don’t understand why they keep leaving me coins from the water fountains?” Out of all the gifts they could offer: flowers, a blue blood pack, a card or letter, and they chose to give Connor change from the water fountains in the park? It just didn’t make sense!

 

Conan laughed, pulling out an ink pen from his pocket and fiddling with it, “you can’t get over the fact they leave you coins, can you?” The younger android grinned as Connor rambled over the oddity of the gifts. RA9 help his brother, because he would certainly need it.


End file.
